Glossary of Skateboard Terms

Need some help with some skateboarding terms? Here's our glossary of terms.

ABD

This is an acronym, meaning already been done, it's used with regards to a particular spot or a particular combination.

Acid Drop

To ride straight off and freefall to the ground.

Air

Air refers to the time when all wheels are off the ground.

Airwalk

A grab trick that refers to holding the nose with your front hand, while your legs are split moving as if walking.

Alley-oop

When the the trick is performed in the opposite direction to travel. Therefore increasing the technical difficulty as the rider can only spot the landing at the last minute.

Anchor Grind

A crooked grind without the back truck in the air, it is pushed down alongside the obstacle.

Andrecht Invert

An invert with a backside grab.

Anti Casper

A half impossible to nose casper. The skateboard is upside down with the point of the nose on the ground, raised at an angle by the back foot under the board. With the front foot on the nose.

Axle Stall

A stall with both skateboard trucks evenly on the lip or object.

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Backflip

A backwards end over end flip of both rider and board. Only perfomed off ramps.

Backside

When the usually the rider rotates such that the back of the body is facing the arc of the trick.

Backside air

Gaining air and traverlling in the direction your toes are facing while turning backside.

Bail

A crash or mistake causing the user to come off.

Bank

Any sloped area under 90 degrees.

Barley Grind

switch frontside 180 ollie into a frontside smith grind.

Bearings

Located inside the wheels to keep the wheels spinning so reducing the need to push as frequently.

Benihana

A tailgrab with the back foot off the board which is then extended below the board on the heelside.

Bertslide

whild crouching place hand on the ground while sliding the board and the rider's body 180.

Big Flip

A 360 flip with a body varial in the same direction.

Big spin

A 360 shove it or a pop shove it, and a body varial in the same direction.

Bluntslide

An advanced slide where the board is at right angles to the object but at a very steep almost vertical angle. Slides on a lip with the underside of the tail on the side edge and the wheels on the top edge.

Bluntslide

see bluntstall, however no sliding.

Board

Often refer to as a Deck, usually wood laminate that all the hardware is attached to.

Boardslide

To grind an object where the contact point is the underneath of the board.

Body Follow

A body varial where the board is also spinning in same direction and both are touching.

Body Jar

A backside nosegrab where your tail and the coping meet as your re enter.

Body varial

The rider spinning whith no contact to the board. Board may or may not be spinning independanly.

Bolts

Part of a skateboard, four per truck used to mount the deck and bottom plate. Also used to gauge feet position.

Bomb Drop

The rider begins with the board behind held by front hand, jumps into the air, putting the board under there feet with the riders hand, and slamming down to the ground.

Boned

This is a tweak to a trick where one leg is straightened.

Boneless

Old skool flat land trick where your front foot pushes against jumping, while holding the board with your back hand

Blunt

Where the contact spot of an obstacle is the area of the rail behind the back trucks, the wheels are also on top of the object.

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Caballerial/Cab

While riding fakie, usually at the lip of a ramp, to comple a 360 in the air and head back down the ramp forwards without grabbing. Named after Steve Caballero.

Carve

To make a long, curving arc while skating.

Coping

A rounded lip on the top of a ramp or obstacle, usually made out of metal sometimes cement or PVC piping.

Crooked Grind

Nosegrind while nose sliding at the same time.

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Darkslide

As you approach something to grind you flip the board and grind along the grip tape while standing on the bottom of the board.

Deck

See Board.

Disaster

The rear wheels are placed over the lip with the board resting on the edge of the lip.

Drop in

To enter the ramp or obstacle from the top.

Durometer

A measurement of rsiliency, or hardness, of a urethane wheel.

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Face plant

Where the face makes contact with the ground or object before any other part of the body.

Fakie

Is where the rider is in there natural stance however is moving backwards.

Feeble Grind

Griding on the rear truck with the front truck over the top of the object you are grinding on making a railslide.

Fifty-Fifty

Grinding on both trucks at the same time.

Frontside

When the turn/trick is done so that the riders body is facing the outside arc of the trick.

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Goofy Foot

A type of stance where the right foot is forward. (also see stance)

Grab

Grabbing either or both ends of the board with one or both hands.

Grip Tape

Sandpaper style material with glue on one side that sticks to the deck to provide friction between the board and the rider.

Grind

To ride on an object or lip with either the trucks or the board making contact.

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Half Cab

A 180 Caballerial

Half Pipe

A type of ramp that is shaped like a U and is used for vert skating.

Hand Plant

A type of trick where one hand grabs the board while the other does a handstand on a lip or edge.

Handrails

Common misconception that these should be used to stop one from falling while going down stairs, when actually they are an excellent grindable surface, in most cases made out of metal.

Hang Up

When one of the trucks catches on an obstacle, usually causing a fall.

Hanger

The large part of the truck that contains the axle inside. It is also the underside of which that is grinded along.

Heelflip

While performing an Ollie the heel pushes down on the edge of the board causing it to flip over.

Heelside edge

The edge of the board closest to the riders heels.

Hip

The spot where a ramp or obstacle comes to a point. Tricks are done while flying over or off of it.

Hit

A jump.

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Indy Grab

Where the rider grabs the toe side of the skateboard between there feet. Often just reffered to as an indy, this is the most common type of grab.

Invert

See Handplant.

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Jump Ramp

A type of ramp which is curved to provide the rider with air to perform a trick. Common in street skating.

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Kicker

See Jump ramp.

Kickflip

Similar to Heelflip but the toe pushes to flip the board.

Kingpin

The bolt that holds the hanger and baseplate together.

Kick Turn

Pressure is applied to the tail and the riders weight turns the board to another direction.

Knee Pad

A type of protective padding worn on the knees.

Knee Slide

A way of controlling a fall by sliding on the plastic caps on the riders knee pads.

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Landing fakie

Landing Backwards

Late

The addition of adding something in just before its completion and landing.

Launch

The moment a rider starts to execute a jump, and the time he is actually flying through th air.

Lid

A helmet

Line

The route that a rider chooses to take.

Lip

The top edge of half/quarterpipe, usually has a coping.

Liptrick

Any trick performed on the lip.

Lipslide

To force the tail over the lip and slide on the surface before re-entry.

Load up

To put weight on one side of the trucks.

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Manual

The skate board equvilent of a wheelie where the back wheels are in contact with the ground and the front are lifted.

McTwist

A 540 degree turn performed on a ramp. Named after Mike McGill

Mongo Foot

This relates to stance, it is where the rider pushes and brakes with there front foot.

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Nollie

When the skater is in there natural stance however with there footing so that there front foot is on the front kicker and the rear foot is on the back bolts.

Nose slide

Sliding on an object with just the nose of the board.

Nosegrind

Where only the front truck is grinding.

Nose Manual

See manual, but where the front wheels are in contact and the rear are lifted.

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Ollie

A no handed air performed by tapping the tail of the board on the ground or ramp surface. Named after Alan "ollie" Gelfend.

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Poser

Someone who acts better than they are

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Quarterpipe

Half of a half pipe.

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Rail

1. A grindable object such as a hand rail or the edge of a bench

2. The edge of the board, can also refer to plastic strips attached to the bottom of the board for grinding.

Railslide

See boardslide.

Ramp Boards

Large deck with firm wheels mounted onto on wide trucks for stability.

Regular Foot

To ride with left foot forward. (also see stance, and Goofy foot)

Riser

Rubber like plastic used to gain extra clearance, useful to reduce wheel bite and more common with larger wheels.

Rock and Roll

Where the underside of the board and wheelsare tapped on the lip before a kickturn to reenter.

Rock to fakie

Where the underside of the board and wheelsare tapped on the lip before reentering backwards. (also see fakie)

Run

The time allowed on the ramp or course during competitions.

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Scrub a wheel

To remover residue from a new wheel to ensure adhesion.

Sealed bearing

A bearing system that uses an actual seal to keep water and deris out.

Sex change

A kickflip with a body-varial.

Sick

Big, crazy, cool, incredibly difficult.

Shove It

Involves varial rotations of the board in increment of 180 degree's.

Smith Grind

Where the back truck is grinding and the rail of the board is also sliding. Frontside the toe side edge and Backside the heel side edge is involved.

Spine ramp

Where two quater pipe's or half pipe's are placed back to back.

Stalefish air

A grab trick where the rear hand grabs the heel edge behind the rear between the bindings where the front leg is boned.

Stalled

When a maneuver is inentially started late into a jump/trick.

Stoked

When a rider is pumped up, confident, maybe addrenaline fuelled.

Stance

There are two stances regular and goofy, regular is where your front foot is your left foot and your back foot is your right foot, and goofy is where your front foot is your right foot and your back foot is your left foot.

Street Boards

Shorter and narrower than ramp boards. Usually shorter wheelbase also.

Street Skating

The skating discpline that refers to the use of ramps, railings benches, anything you might find on a street.

Swing Weight

Distrobution of weight from tip to tail. used for balance and rotation.

Switch

Any trick which involves the rider landing or taking off backwards.

Switch Stance

This is when the rider is in the opposite stance to the normal footing.

Switchback

Used to describe turns that are around 180 degrees.

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Tabletop

Style of ramp where there is a lead up to flat on top and a landing ramp

Tailslide

Sliding on the tail of the board.

Technical

How difficult a trick is seen to be.

Transition

The curved part between 0 and 90 degrees.

Truck

The hardware comprised of the baseplate, hanger and axle.

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Varial

An aerial where the board is spun from backwards to forwards beneath the feet.

Vert Ramp

A style of ramp where a half pipe has a vertical element, after the transition.

Vert Skating

The discpline of skating and tricks associated with vert ramps.

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Wall

Any bank at or above 90 degrees.

Wallride

To ride along a wall.

Wheelbase

The distance between each set of wheels.

Wheels

Usually made out of urethane, sometimes with a plastic core. these are mounted onto the axle with bearings inbetween.

Wipe out

See bail

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Zonk

Hit the wall...

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